The Sixth Mass Extinction

After the five mass extinctions on Earth that were caused by meteorite impacts, volcanism and large-scale climate change, several scientists predict that we are currently at the beginning of a sixth mass extinction. In this scenario, it is humankind that is causing the mass extinction with the illegal trade in wildlife as one of the most important hazards to wildlife species. This chapter presents an analysis of the causes and consequences of the global defaunation in the context of technological innovation and industrialisation of the wildlife trade. The complexity of the current decline of biodiversity and the effect of defaunation will be demonstrated by the sensibility of ecological interaction between animals and plants. The exploitation of natural resources has become a part of the social, political and economic dynamics.